PRESIDENT OBAMA:ABC News’ Mary Bruce: “Obama Speech to Congress Set; Carney Calls Scheduling Spat ‘Not Very Relevant’” The date is set. The scheduling SNAFU that beset Washington for the past two days is over. President Obama will address a joint session of Congress on Thursday, Sept. 8 at 7 p.m., according to an official invitation sent “respectfully” from House Speaker John Boehner. LINK

The New York Times’ Jackie Calmes: “Plan to Create Jobs Is a Balancing Act for the President” Anticipation of President Obama’s plan for creating jobs while cutting deficits, now heightened by the scheduling controversy over his prime time address to Congress next Thursday, has turned on an question: Will he go big and highlight his sharp differences with Republicans, or will he be pragmatic and downsize his ideas to get Republican votes? LINK

The Washington Times’ Dave Boyer: “Obama: From ‘yes we can’ to ‘it takes time’” When he ran for the presidency in 2008, Barack Obama sprinkled his campaign speeches with ambitious catchphrases such as “the fierce urgency of now” and “yes we can.” LINK

The Los Angeles Times’ Peter Nicholas and Kathleen Hennessey: “More sniping in partisan spat over Obama’s jobs address” Reporting from Washington— If President Obama had hoped to curb partisanship and reboot his presidency by calling on lawmakers next week to help him create jobs and restore economic health, the project already is wildly off track. LINK

The Hill’s Sam Youngman: “Obama, Boehner reach deal on timing of address to Congress” President Obama will give his jobs address to a joint session of Congress at 7 p.m. EDT next Thursday. The White House and Speaker John Boehner’s (R-Ohio) office announced they had reached the deal in two separate releases emailed to reporters. LINK

GOP:
The Washington Post’s Philip Rucker and Amy Gardner: “Illegal immigration is flash point for Republican White House hopefuls” Mitt Romney opened his town hall meeting here talking about the economy — his thoughts on growing business, getting government out of the way — just as he does nearly every other campaign event. But when he opened last week’s forum for questions, the first voter he called on didn’t seem concerned about any of that. He wanted to know the Republican presidential candidate’s stance on border security. LINK

Politico’s Roger Simon: “W.H. furious over speech delay” It seemed like a trivial matter: On Wednesday, House Republicans forced the president to delay his speech to a joint session of Congress by one day. Who cares? The White House cares. Very much. “It is a big deal that the House said ‘no’ to the president from our end,” a White House source with intimate knowledge of what took place between the House and the president told me Thursday. LINK

The Wall Street Journal’s Janet Hook “GOP’s Hopes Rise for Control of Senate” Even as Republicans focus on a tumultuous presidential campaign, they see their chances rising to take control of the Senate, the last bastion of Democratic power in Congress. It’s a prospect already shaping life on Capitol Hill, as emboldened Republicans, who are expected to retain control of the House, dig in against compromise on issues such as tax increases and stimulus spending. LINK

OTHER / REGIONAL:
ABC News’ Michael Falcone and Jennifer Wlach: “ProDonald Trump Website Evolves Into 527 Group” Donald Trump may have passed on a presidential bid for now, but his supporters intend to keep hope alive. Trump’s top political operative, Michael Cohen, who founded the website, ShouldTrumpRun.com has morphed it into a so-called 527 group, which is allowed to raise money for political activities and issue advocacy. LINK

The New York Daily News’ Jonathan Lemire and Reuven Blau: “Mayor Bloomberg under attack for coverup of ex-deputy Stephen Goldsmith’s domestic violence arrest” Under furious attack about his coverup of a top deputy’s domestic violence arrest, Mayor Bloomberg abruptly canceled his radio show Friday morning to avoid being grilled. LINK